Celebrating 100 Days of Hiring 100k Military Spouses

In June 2018, sixteen companies, from across the country and in a variety of industries, partnered with Hiring Our Heroes to launch the Hiring 100k Military Spouses Employment Initiative. Realizing the need to create real and impactful change for military spouses seeking meaningful employment, these organizations planted a flag with a public commitment to hire military spouses.

Today marks 100 days of this ambitious initiative to put 100,000 military spouses to work.

Military spouses are unemployed at a rate of 16%, over four times the rate of their civilian counterparts. The issue of military spouse unemployment and underemployment significantly impacts the retention and readiness rates of our all-volunteer force; ultimately making spouse employment an issue of national security.

Since the announcement of the initiative on June 28, we have had nearly 3000 commitments to hire.

With this shared goal in mind, we will continue to harness the power of businesses, across the country, both large and small, to raise awareness of the issue of military spouse employment and underemployment.

Military spouses are the workforce solution that companies are looking for. They are tenacious, well-rounded, generally posses a higher level of education than the general populations, and aren’t afraid to think outside the box. Hiring a military spouse isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do.

See below for thoughts from some of our founding coalition members:

“The Hiring 100K Military Spouses Initiative has provided Comcast NBCUniversal with continued opportunities to build on our long-standing support of military spouses as not just our teammates, but also as our community partners and customers. In addition to our existing relationships to support military spouses with partners like PsychArmor and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, the 100K initiative has helped us discover new allies across the spectrum of employers that we believe will sustain Hiring Our Heroes’ efforts to reach and surpass this lofty hiring goal within the next few years.

“Capital One is proud to partner with Hiring Our Heroes and their Hiring 100K Initiative. The words courage and sacrifice don’t just apply to the men and women fighting on the front lines, they describe thousands of military spouses and their extraordinary service to our country here at home.
At Capital One, we’re proud to have members from every branch of the military, including military spouses, working at all levels and within a variety of specialties across the company.

Military spouses are problem solvers. They can adapt to changing situations and shift gears at a moment’s notice. In a business environment that values agility, ingenuity and reliability, the experience and insights that military spouses bring to the workplace are invaluable.”

– John Finneran, EVP, Corporate Secretary, Capital One

“The Hiring Our Heroes Military Spouse Program Initiative has been an excellent way for HCA hiring managers to make connections to highly qualified Military Spouses. This partnership provides exceptional support as we provide Military Spouses with long-term career opportunities…”

– Avery King Military Affairs Talent Acquisition Lead, HCA Healthcare

“Over the past five years, we’ve been encouraged by how Microsoft Software & Systems Academy (MSSA) is positively impacting the lives of military service members and veterans by helping them successfully transition into technology careers. Through our work with this community, we’ve become more aware of the need to support military spouses as well. They often face unique employment challenges due to frequent relocations, separation from spouses for extended periods of time due to deployments, and sparse childcare—and are incredibly talented and resilient.

So we’re proud to expand on what we’ve learned from MSSA and apply to it our new, ground-breaking Military Spouse Technology Academy (MSTA) pilot program, which launched this September. The program is designed with the specific needs of military spouses in mind, offering flexibility and support so they can continue caring for their families while training for successful careers in technology.”

“When my husband was recently assigned to the Pentagon, I was determined to maintain meaningful employment and was able to do so thanks to the Hiring Our Heroes – Military Spouse Professional Network and Hilton’s Operation Opportunity Initiative. Together, along with the other companies committed to hiring 100k military spouses, a truly positive difference is being made in the lives of military spouses.”

– Stephanie W, Military Spouse, Hilton

“Booz Allen Hamilton offices are promoting the #100KSpouses initiative from DC to San Diego to Hawaii. Our goal is to lead the industry in military spouse hiring!”

– Laura Schmiegel, Community Partnerships, Booz Allen Hamilton

“La Quinta has ramped up our commitment to Military Spouses through increased participation in Hiring Our Heroes Milspouse events, as well as increased efforts to identify and recruit Military Spouses to join our team.”